Sponsored by:
Senator LINDA R. GREENSTEIN
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
SYNOPSIS
Concerns implementation of fire sprinkler system requirements in newly constructed townhouses.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the implementation of fire sprinkler system requirements in newly constructed townhouses and amending P.L.2023, c.265.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 1 of P.L.2023, c.265 (C. ) is amended to read as follows:
1. a. A [newly constructed] construction permit application for a new townhouse subject to the one-and two-family dwelling subcode, adopted by the Commissioner of Community Affairs pursuant to section 5 of P.L.1975, c.217 (C.52:27D-123), adopted as N.J.A.C.5:23-3.21, or succeeding subcode, [for which an application for a construction permit has not been] shall not be declared complete by the enforcing agency [before] on or after the first day of the [seventh] 25th month next following the date of enactment of P.L.2023, c.265 (C. ), [shall be installed with] unless the construction permit application for the new townhouse contains provisions for the installation of an automatic fire sprinkler system in accordance with the requirements of P.L.2023, c.265 (C. ).
b. On or before the first day of the [fifth] 13th month next following the date of enactment of [P.L.2023, c.265 (C. )] P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill, the Commissioner of Community Affairs shall adopt, pursuant to section 5 of the "State Uniform Construction Code Act," P.L.1975, c.217 (C.52:27D-123) and the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations to amend and supplement, as necessary, the one- and two-family dwelling subcode, and any other necessary components of the State Uniform Construction Code, to establish standards for the design and construction of townhouses to comply with P.L.2023, c.265 (C. ). The rules and regulations shall incorporate the provisions of the 2021 International Residential Code, Section R313.1, or any successor model code, for the installation of an automatic fire sprinkler systems.
c. A development shall not be subject to the provisions of this section if, prior to the first day of the 25th month next following the date of enactment of P.L.2023, c.265 (C. ), a development plan or subdivision application has been submitted that pertains to the development, which, for the purposes of this section, includes but shall not be limited to:
(1) a preliminary or final approval from a municipal planning or zoning board memorialized by a resolution of approval;
(2) a developer's agreement granted pursuant to P.L.1975, c.291 (C.40:55D-1 et seq.);
(3) a redevelopment agreement entered pursuant to P.L.1992, c.79 (C.40A:12A-1 et al.);
(4) a payment in lieu of tax agreement;
(5) a fair share plan or housing element that provides for the development, and is subject to a judgment of repose or compliance, an affordable housing settlement agreement, or other approval provided pursuant to the "Fair Housing Act," P.L.1985, c.222 (C.52:27D-301 et al.) or Mount Laurel doctrine; or
(6) a building permit.
d. As used in this section:
"Automatic fire sprinkler system" means an integrated system of underground and overhead piping designed in accordance with fire protection engineering standards and shall include a suitable water supply. The portion of the system above the ground is a network of specially sized or hydraulically designed piping installed in a structure or area, generally overhead, and to which automatic sprinklers are connected in a systematic pattern. The system is generally activated by heat from a fire and discharges water over the fire area.
"Townhouse" means a single-family dwelling unit constructed in a group of three or more attached units in which each unit extends from foundation to roof and with a yard or public way on not less than two sides.
(cf: P.L.2023, c.265, s.1)
2. Section 2 of P.L.2023, c.265 (C. ) is amended to read as follows:
2. [This act] P.L.2023, c.265 (C. ) shall take effect on the first day of the [seventh] 25th month next following the date of enactment, except that the Commissioner of Community Affairs may take anticipatory action necessary to implement the provisions of P.L.2023, c.265 (C. ).
(cf: P.L.2023, c.265, s.2)
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
In order to provide sufficient time for the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) to adopt necessary rules and regulations, and for developers to prepare to install sprinkler systems in townhouses, in accordance with the requirements of a recently-enacted statute, P.L.2023, c.265, this bill would extend and modify certain implementation-related timelines and requirements in that statute.
Enacted in January 2024, P.L.2023, c.265 requires the installation of an automatic fire sprinkler system in new townhouses for which a construction permit application has not been declared complete prior to August 1, 2024, the first day of the seventh month following the statute's enactment. This bill would modify this requirement so that a construction permit application for a new townhouse subject to the one-and two-family dwelling subcode, adopted by the Commissioner of Community Affairs pursuant to section 5 of P.L.1975, c.217 (C.52:27D-123), would not be declared complete by the enforcing agency on or after the first day of the 25th month next following the date of enactment of P.L.2023, c.265, unless the construction permit application for the new townhouse contains provisions for the installation of an automatic fire sprinkler system in accordance with the requirements of P.L.2023, c.265.
The bill also specifies that the provisions of P.L.2023, c.265 would not apply to a development for which a developmental site plan or subdivision application has been submitted prior to the first day of the 25th month following the enactment of P.L.2023, c.265, including:
§ a preliminary or final approval from a municipal planning or zoning board memorialized by a resolution of approval;
§ developer's agreement;
§ a redevelopment agreement;
§ a payment in lieu of tax agreement;
§ a fair share plan or housing element that provides for the development, and is subject to a judgment of repose or compliance, an affordable housing settlement agreement, or other approval provided under the "Fair Housing Act" or Mount Laurel doctrine; or
§ a building permit.
P.L.2023, c.265 also requires the Commissioner of Community Affairs to adopt rules and regulations incorporating International Residential Code guidance pertaining to such installations by June 1, 2024, the first day of the fifth month following the date of that statute's enactment. The bill would modify this requirement to allow the commissioner until the first day of the 13th month following the enactment of this bill, instead of the enactment of P.L.2023, c.265, to adopt these rules and regulations.